


Ripples

by rosemeral



Category: The School for Good and Evil - Soman Chainani
Genre: But not exactly, But not really much, Canon Compliant, F/F, Jaunt Jolie, Minor Character Death, Oneshot, mostly just fluff, soft girls in love, sorta like drabbles?, with a tiny bit of angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-10
Updated: 2020-08-10
Packaged: 2021-03-06 01:02:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,461
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25814743
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rosemeral/pseuds/rosemeral
Summary: “It’s going to be okay.”Beatrix has heard those three words upwards of a thousand times. Most people in her year have, from parents and friends and teachers. But somehow, coming from Reena, it means so much more.~Oneshot detailing significant events in Beatrix and Reena's relationship, as they travel from friends to . . . more than friends.
Relationships: Beatrix & Reena & Millicent (The School for Good and Evil), Beatrix/Reena (The School for Good and Evil)
Kudos: 12





	Ripples

**Author's Note:**

> Jeevan doesn't exist in this fic. Nor does he exist in my mind.

_****_

_**School for Girls** _

_****_

_**year two** _

For the eighth time today, Beatrix runs a hand over her newly shaved head, marveling at the fuzz against her fingertips. It's not that she doesn't like it, it's just - so different. She used to be able to wind locks of her hair around her finger, braid it up into a crown (a poor imitation of her real one back in Jaunt Jolie), weave flowers into it. With a shaved head, she can't do any of that.

She sighs, sinking down onto her blue silk bedsheets, and looks into the mirror. The girl staring back doesn't look like her. She's not sure if that's a bad thing.

“Beatrix!” Reena calls, sticking her head through the doorway. “Are you staring at your reflection again? Come to lunch, you look great.” At the last sentence Beatrix’s mouth goes dry, and it feels like a desert when Reena steps in and pulls her arm. “Beaaaa,” the other girl whines, and Beatrix lets herself be dragged along.

Her crush on Reena isn't new. They've known each other since they were children, always playing together at the yearly Good parades after Pasha Dunes and Jaunt Jolie became allies. At first it was just because it would look good, then it blossomed into friendship. But now Beatrix might be hoping for a little more.

Especially these last few months. With no princes around to distract them, they've been spending a lot of time together, often with Millicent but sometimes without. They've been on picnics together, gone to sit by the pond and splash water at each other, and had so many midnight conversations. Sometimes it almost feels like they're dating. But that's crazy.

“Bea!” comes an airy voice. Beatrix looks up and sees that they've arrived at the meadow, where Millie is sitting with a lunch pail full of sandwiches. “Thank goodness you're finally here,” Millie continues, smiling. “Dean Sader’s just about to give a presentation on… er, something about men. I think.”

Reena settles in beside Beatrix with her own lunch pail, and Beatrix takes one of her sandwiches without thinking. Sharing food is just second nature to them by now. “It's about misogyny in history and how it's shaped society,” Reena says, and Millie nods enthusiastically. “Oh, and also how gender roles affect queer relationships.”

Beatrix’s heart skips at the word queer, and she glances over to Reena. A girl loving another girl isn't taboo, but it isn't exactly encouraged at the Schools either. “Fuck gender roles,” Beatrix says darkly, thinking about her mother running their household by herself when Beatrix was young and getting a lot of disgusted looks for it, then claps a hand over her mouth at her own daring. She's never sworn before.

Neither has Millicent. “Beatrix!” she whispers. “Someone might hear!”

“I've already shaved my head. What does it matter if I curse?” Beatrix says. Maybe she's starting to become a bit of a rebel. Maybe she likes that.

Reena grins at her after she says that, and Beatrix blushes. Now she definitely likes it. 

_****_

_**School for New Evil** _

_****_

_**one year later** _

Beatrix watches Reena pace in their room, green and black uniform offsetting her dark skin, and bites her lip. The force is so hard that blood wells, but she’s used to injuries by now. The School Master has no qualms when it comes to pushing or shoving students. 

She misses year one, when everything was normal and delicate and beautiful. She even misses herself, that vapid princess who only cared about dresses. And Tedros, stupidly enough. That year had everything her mother told her about - or at least it would have, if Sophie and Agatha had never shown up.

But they did, and it happened, and now she’s been a part of two wars and another’s shaping up to start in a few months. Probably once Agatha and Tedros appear from. . . wherever they are. 

Beatrix isn’t too worried about the war. Good always wins, right? Agatha and Tedros are definitely Good. She’s just hoping none of her friends will die. Reena and Millie especially, but she’s on good terms with lots of Evers - Chaddick (who took her to the ball in first year but decided they’re better off as friends), Nicholas, Flavia, Giselle, Tarquin. . . the list goes on.

Because she didn’t really know Tristan, but it still hurt when he died. Hurt a lot, like a stabbing pain in her stomach that will never go away. If anyone she was close to died, she doesn’t know how she could bear it.

And if Reena died. . . 

She swipes at the bed viciously, pulling the thought out of her mind. Reena looks over, warm brown eyes landing on Beatrix’s balled up fist, and looks concerned. “Bea? You okay?” 

Beatrix nods mutely and stands up, then sits back down, sighing. “No. I’m not. Reena -” Her voice comes out in a gasping breath and Reena, angel that she is, sits down next to her and puts an arm around Beatrix’s shoulders. 

“It’s going to be okay.”

Beatrix has heard those three words upwards of a thousand times. Most people in her year have, from parents and friends and teachers. But somehow, coming from Reena, it means so much more. She burrows into Reena’s side and puts her head down, letting her short golden hair fall forward. It’s been growing out. She doesn’t have the will to cut it. Inside, she’s trying to become the girl she was in first year, even though she knows that’s never going to happen.

After a few minutes, Beatrix lifts her head up and spends a minute studying Reena, the way her lashes graze her cheek when she blinks (Beatrix has always wanted Reena’s eyelashes; they’re fantastically long), how her dark hair falls over her shoulder, the content smile that curves her lips.

“Reena, can I tell you something?”

The other princess nods, and Beatrix feels her heart beating faster than it ever has before, even faster than it was during any Trial by Tale or war or evil laugh. “I. . .” _What if she hates me?_ Beatrix thinks, but Reena could never hate anyone. And there are Reena’s warm eyes, comforting her, spilling out love and gentleness. “Yes?”

“I love you.”

_There._

Now comes the waiting and it might be even scarier, the way Reena’s eyebrows are raised. They sit for what seems like years or decades or even centuries, the rough sheets scratching Beatrix’s back. If her heart was beating faster than ever before, now she’s more uncomfortable than she can ever remember being. She looks away, gaze dropping to the floor. How stupid of her. She just hopes she hasn’t ruined their friendship with those three careless words.

“Beatrix. Look at me?”

She stares at the floor a little longer, then wills herself to look up and slowly she does, back into Reena’s soft eyes. Impossibly warm and impossibly brown and impossibly beautiful. “I - I like you too.”

Beatrix’s whole body is paralyzed. Reena likes her back. _Reena likes her back_. She can barely move, and she thinks blankly that this is what real, true exhilaration feels like. Not singing a cheesy love ballad to a boy you only liked because he was a prince. Not getting a new fancy dress that’s just like the thirteen you already own. No, it’s when you tell your best friend you love them.

And they say they like you back.

Once Beatrix has processed all her emotions - ranging from shock that Reena isn’t freaked out to glee that she actually said yes to worry that she’s not good enough to want - and she can move again, she lets her eyes drop down. This time she’s not looking at the floor but at Reena’s lips, and as one they move forward and press their lips together, pale pink on darker red. 

The kiss feels like Beatrix is being transported to another world, a world where only good things happen and the air is made of spun sugar and it always smells like Reena’s perfume, coconut and vanilla. Reena’s lips are so soft and wonderful and this is what Beatrix has wanted for three years now and she can’t believe it’s finally, _finally_ happening.

When they pull apart, both girls’ cheeks are flushed. “I think Millie’s waiting for us to tutor her,” Beatrix breathes after what seems like years of staring at each other but is probably barely a minute. 

“But should we. . . talk about that?” Reena asks, voice nervous but eyes full of hope. 

“I love you,” Beatrix says, and it doesn’t feel nearly as scary as it did five minutes ago. “And I’d like to try this. Whatever it is. I want to keep kissing you and I want to love you, Reena. I want to be happy with you. Is that enough of a talk?”

Reena doesn’t answer, but she jumps up and takes Beatrix’s hand and they run down the corridors to the Library together. They’re quiet so as not to attract the School Master’s attention, and it’s exactly like what they did before the kiss, but there’s something new. Something more intimate in the way they clutch hands and steal glances at each other ever so often. It’s something beautiful. 

_****_

_**Jaunt Jolie** _

_****_

_**one year later** _

Beatrix and Reena stand in front of the mirror in their room at the palace of Jaunt Jolie, pulling on their armor. They’ve been subdued for the last few weeks, ever since that night before they left the School, when they got the news that Millie ran away. Apparently it’s because she didn’t like her deer form, but Beatrix has a sinking feeling that her and Reena’s relationship was part of it. And even if it wasn’t, Beatrix still feels terrible. She and Reena were supposed to help Millie rise in rank, at least to a sidekick, but they failed.

“Come on,” Reena says, taking Beatrix’s hand once they’ve finished dressing. Their quest is to drive away the pirates that have been attacking Jaunt Jolie for the past few months, with a few other Evers. Beatrix was going to try to seduce the pirate captains and then have them turn on each other, but she’s not sure if she has the will to seduce anyone. And she knows Reena has never been a fan of that plan. So now they’re just going to fight and hope their collective efforts are enough. If they’re not, she’s sure Sophie or Agatha will come flying in to the rescue. 

Lately, nothing she does has seemed to be enough. She couldn’t keep Millicent around, she’s been terrible with a sword lately (seriously, _fuck_ gender roles. She could have had a sword fighting class at the School if she wasn’t a girl), and she doesn’t have high hopes for their chances against the pirates. It doesn’t matter, anyway. She knows she’s just a background character in Sophie, Agatha, and Tedros’ story. That fact would have plagued first year Beatrix a lot more than fourth year Beatrix.

At least she has Reena, even if they’ve been a little bit distant since Millie ran. 

“Reena? You okay?” she asks as they’re walking down the hall. They’re still holding hands, which is a win for Beatrix.

“As okay as anyone can be right now,” Reena answers. “How are you?”

“Same, I guess.” They fall into silence, awkward silence that permeates the air and creates a distinct feeling of _this isn’t how it’s meant to be_. They’re supposed to be comfortable with each other. They’re supposed to be each other’s safe havens. But things are a lot different than they were even a year ago, and neither of them have felt safe in a while. 

Once they’re in the throne room, they meet up with the rest of their group and Queen Jacinda. Looking at the Queen reminds Beatrix painfully of her own mother, who she hasn’t seen in four years. She wanted to go see her during this visit, but all of their time is going to be spent planning and fighting. Reena notices her frown and squeezes her hand tighter, and for a moment it feels like their connection is back.

“Okay, so, what’s our plan?” Flavia asks, and everybody turns to Beatrix. Right. She’s supposed to be the Leader of this whole thing.

“Er. . . fight?” Beatrix’s voice is weak, weaker than she’d thought possible. Bastian has to strain to hear her.

“Fight?” Oliver demands. “Is that it? We need a plan, a strategy, whatever you want to call it. So. What’s it gonna be, Miss Leader?”

“I, um-” Her breathing is coming faster but then she feels Reena’s hand bracing her shoulder and she can breathe again. “I. . . think we can go from the Docks out. Um, can I have a map of Jaunt Jolie?” The Queen hands it to her and the others gather around her while she points to spots. “Um, we still don’t have a lookout, but maybe Flavia can watch from up high? Bastian and Oliver, you’re our strongest fighters, so you’ll enter the Docks first at Flavia’s signal. And Reena, you’ll be with me, and we’ll enter last. Maybe from the water. . .”

The rest of the meeting goes well, and the five Evers finish planning the attack for the next day. They retire to their rooms before dinner. Beatrix immediately collapses on the bed when she gets back. Reena, whose room is right next door, walks in and settles beside Beatrix.

“Thanks,” Beatrix mumbles, and Reena smiles. 

They’re silent for a while, each remembering the last time they sat on a bed together. Reena’s the first to turn and then Beatrix, and they kiss like it’s the last time they’ll ever see each other. Like they’re starving for any semblance of love. Maybe they are. Beatrix is, at least.

Beatrix’s eyes are teary when she breaks away, and she stares at the wall where her Ever school uniform is hanging up. “I missed you.”

Reena shifts closer and presses into Beatrix’s side, the one constant in Beatrix’s life. She’s solid and warm and most importantly, real. “I'm here now. As long as I’m here, I promise you’ll be okay.”

To Beatrix’s shock, she believes her. 

“I love you,” Beatrix whispers, burying her head in Reena’s shoulder. “I’m sorry for not being there. I’m sorry for being a mess, I’m sorry I’m sorry I’m so fucking sorry-” She gulps and for a moment, she’s so glad she’s not the same person she was in first year. First year Beatrix would have never been able to say she’s sorry, not even to Reena. She’s grown, and she’s proud of herself, even if she isn’t always proud of what she does or decides.

“Oh, Bea.” Reena strokes her hair with a gentle hand. Beatrix’s hair is down to her shoulders now, and she’s considering cutting it again. Having her hair short was freeing, and she really needs that feeling of freedom right now. “You don’t have to apologize for anything,” Reena says, her voice threatening to break. “You’re perfect, Bea.”

Perfect.

She shakes her head. “Not perfect. Trying. Isn’t that the best we can do?”

“Yeah.” Reena smiles into Beatrix’s hair. “Yeah. We’re trying.”

_****_

_**The Igraine** _

_****_

_**barely a month later** _

Millie’s dead. 

Beatrix has her face pressed into Reena’s shoulder. Both are sobbing and trying to hide it. Millie, their best friend, the sweetest person either of them knew, is dead. Killed by an arrow when she was trying to save them. Sheets of paper lie scattered around them, with inky pens poised to start writing letters of condolences, but Beatrix knows if she even picks up a pen, she'll burst into full tears again.

Turns out she doesn't need a pen to cry. Thinking about Millie’s family - a redheaded bunch filled with food and smiles and love - makes her start bawling again. Millie’s parents and three sisters have always been so welcoming and kind. How can Beatrix tell them their daughter and sister is dead?

She can't. She just can't. If she stays here on this ship for long enough, maybe she can forget about Millie, and isn't that a horrible thing to think? But writing those letters would make it so much more real, and that feeling of knowing someone's gone and they're never, ever coming back is worse than anything Beatrix has born so far. Worse than the war, worse than the shame of having Agatha and Sophie sweep in to save them from pirates, worse than the barely there scraps of love she got from her mother. 

She can't.

Breath hitching, she falls back onto the ship’s hard floor, and Reena lies down next to her and puts an arm around her shoulder. She doesn’t deserve Reena’s love, not now, not when she’s failed Millicent. Millie was so brave up until her end, hooves raised to kick the mysterious Snake in the face and then that stupid fucking _scim_. Who invented scims anyway? Whoever it was should be killed as brutally as her dear Millie was.

And the Snake. The horrible, wicked, Snake that she absolutely loathes. She stands up, grabbing the urn that holds Millie’s ashes, then marches to the door of the ship cabin and looks back at Reena. “Coming?”

Her voice lacks any emotion, but Reena knows her better than anyone else and so she can detect the hint of _I need you_ in the undertones. Silently, Reena stands and walks beside her as they go to look over the side of the ship, Beatrix clutching the jar. 

“Are you ready?” Reena asks, and Beatrix can tell she’s almost in tears again. 

“I am. Are you?” It’s never been harder to get the words out, but Millie died almost a week ago. Beatrix knows it’s time. They might be grieving for the rest of their lives - she wouldn’t be surprised - but they have to let her go sometime. Beatrix doesn’t believe in an afterlife, but she thinks maybe Millie is going someplace. Someplace else, someplace new, someplace where everything is sweet and loving and beautiful, just like Millie. Slowly, Beatrix takes off the lid of the jar and stares down to the ashes, all that’s left of their Millicent.

Reena takes a deep breath and nods and Beatrix shifts half of the jar’s weight onto the other girl’s hands. “One,” Beatrix says. “Two,” Reena continues. “Three,” they whisper together, then they walk forward and turn the jar over, spilling the ashes into the sea. The ashes make ripples in the water as they sink.

“You guys okay?” 

Both girls turn to see Agatha coming up behind them, a concerned look in her large brown eyes. She feels a sting of pain for how she treated the Reader in their first year, but thankfully, Agatha doesn’t seem to hold any regrets.

“We’re gonna be,” Reena says, taking Beatrix’s hand and squeezing. Agatha’s eyes drop down to their intertwined hands and widen (if that’s even possible), but to her credit, she doesn’t say anything. She just nods, smiles sadly, and walks away.

“You think we’re actually going to be okay?” Beatrix asks softly, once Agatha’s gone.

Reena takes a second to answer, staring back out over the water. When she does speak, her voice is stronger. “I do. If we have each other, I think we’ll always be okay. Not perfect, right? Trying.”

“That’s the best we can do,” Beatrix finishes. They share a kiss, something hopeful and loving. Unlike their other kisses, this is a kiss of possibility, of _maybe, hopefully_. Most of all, it’s a kiss that tells the other they’ll always be there, no matter what happens. No matter what tears them apart, they’ll always find their way back to each other. They have been, without even realizing it, since they were children.

They pull apart and gaze at each other, blue eyes meeting topaz. “I love you,” Beatrix murmurs.

“Forever,” Reena says.

Then, as one, they turn back to the rail and stare into the glossy water. The ripples are still there, spreading out into the wide open sea and carrying Millicent’s ashes with them. She’ll become part of the sea now, floating forever in crystal-blue water. 

Beatrix places her hand on the railing and Reena lays hers over it, and they’re silent for a long time. That’s fine with both of the Evergirls. Words don’t need to be said for them to communicate. Just like they always have. Just like they always will.

They’re going to be alright. They’re going to try, and as long as they have each other, they’ll succeed. Beatrix can flow on, expanding slowly but steadily into the world with her best friend and true love at her side.

Just a ripple in the water.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading, hope you enjoyed! This is a bit different from the kind of fic I usually write; more thought driven than action driven. And Beatrix's POV was an interesting one to explore, since we don't really get much of her in the books (and not much Reena, for that matter). But it was a lot of fun! I love her character arc, how Bea goes from a spoiled princess to a badass sword lesbian (I know it's not confirmed, I don't care). Anyway, thanks again for reading! Leave a kudos and maybe a comment if you liked it; it's very much appreciated :)


End file.
